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Report: Florida to hire Wofford co-DC Jonathan Saxon as assistant coach

Danby: Daniel Hager03/12/26DanielHagerOn3

Florida is set to add Wofford co-Defensive Coordinator Jonathan Saxon to its staff, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported on Thursday.

Saxon will work alongside defensive line coach Gerald Chatman in aiding Florida‘s defensive line. He has served as Wofford‘s co-DC/DL coach since 2023, and now joins Jon Sumrall‘s inaugural staff at Florida.

With an all new regime, the Gators are seeking a return to relevance under Sumrall. The program has not won at least 10 games in a season since 2019, and has missed the cut for bowl eligibility in two of the last three seasons.

Jon Sumrall will embark on his first season at Florida in 2026, replacing former head coach Billy Napier. Sumrall boasts a stellar track record across four seasons of being an FBS head coach (two at Troy, two at Tulane). In that span, the Kentucky alum has led his programs to a 43-12 record with a College Football Playoff appearance for Tulane in 2025.

“As I went through the process, at the back end of having to make a decision on what I was going to do next, you start hearing from the likes of Urban Meyer and Steve Spurrier and you have touchpoints with Tim Tebow,” Sumrall told On3’s J.D. PicKell on The Hard Count. “A lot of those individuals are really encouraging and positive about, ‘Man, we’ve watched you, we’ve studied you. You fit this place.’ That was maybe something to help solidify, okay, this does fit. And I felt like my passion, my energy, the way I operate, it fits the University of Florida. This place fits me.

“You don’t always take the turns you think you’re going to take on career decisions way out in advance. Some of the time, the best things that you do are things you didn’t plan way far in advance. It just kind of comes together. But the way this thing came into place is really amazing. We have fallen in love with it here. Love the people, love the university, love this community and very grateful to be able to serve as the head football coach here.”

With Saxon help lead the way, Wofford‘s defense ranked fourth in the SoCon in 2024 and first in the conference last season. The Terriers finished the 2025 campaign with a 6-6 (5-3) record with a rushing defense that ranked seventh amongst all FCS programs.